Continuing my thinking about Brazilian Wicca.
The Pagans I met in Sao Paulo were notably young. I’d say ninety percent of them were under the age of 35, and most were in their early-to-mid-twenties.. Many were college students.
I am reminded that in the 1970s and 80s, American Paganism was very much a Baby Boomer phenomenon. I recall one year (’89? ’90?) I looked around a festival and thought, ‘If this movement just ages with us, it will die.’ The next year, not only did I see a massive influx of younger Pagans, but older ones as well, so that now, American Pagan events almost always show a full life-cycle range.
Brazil isn’t there yet, but I see no reason it won’t get there.
Another thing I noticed was, in the small group of people I spoke with (the ones who spoke English), fully three people had their moms with them, including the organizer. None of the moms, I think, were Pagan. This is a remarkable level of acceptance, not something I’ve seen in the U.S. I wonder if the prevalence of Candomblé influences tese Brazilians to be more open to a variety of religious paths.
